The Broken Pendulum

The Clock Strikes Twelve

02: The Dragon and the Castle

13

JUN/17

Fin, Therion, and Sixtus plan their trip north to Ozryn by stopping by The Silver Buckler (a general goods store not to be confused with The Silver Shield). Once inside, Fin purchases ten rations, a bed roll, and soap. Therion purchases eight rations and a bedroll. Sixtus purchases nothing.

The party sets out on the road, knowing that the journey will take eight days; seven to reach the coast where they will have to charter a ferry, and one day at sea to the island that contains Ozryn. Once darkness descends on the first night of travel, the party makes camp by a stream. Sixtus catches a fish with his hands and Fin asks Sixtus to teach him how to do that. Sixtus obliges and Fin watches and learns. The party eats dinner and retires for the evening, taking watch shifts. Therion goes first and nothing out of the ordinary occurs. Fin takes second watch and, towards the end of his shift, hears a loud splash in the stream and feels the ground shake.

The party awakens with a start to find a red elder dragon. She speaks (to Therion who is the only party member who understands draconic) and informs the party that an evil princess has taken over her castle and took her wyrmlings hostage. After much hesitation, the party agrees to go with the dragon to her castle. They climb on her back and are whisked away.

As dawn breaks, the party see the castle in the clearing. The dragon lands in front of the castle and tells the party that if she goes any further, the princess will kill her babies. Therion tells the dragon that the party will get her children back, and then the party descends into the castle.

The castle is old, abandoned, but extremely structurally sound. It has been made with the most skillful masonry and has stood the tests of time.

The party travels through the castle, in the first room disarming a falling column trap and in the second room dispatching monstrous centipedes. During the battle with the centipedes, Sixtus extracted some white matter from one of the dying centipedes. He later explained that it was the centipede's essence and that it made him stronger.

Farther through the castle, the party encounters an ankheg and finds random treasures as they march towards the back of the castle. They reach the old kitchens and see a statue of a king. On the pedestal of the statue the party finds a ceremonial dagger and an inscription. Most of the inscription is to weathered to read but the party makes out the text "Good King…. …. betrayed by his closest advisors." The party takes the ceremonial dagger and plunges it into the statue's back, revealing a hidden door. The party travels through the door to find three wyrmlings, bound and shackled, and a manic princess.

The party tries to reason with the princess but are unsuccessful. The party learns that the princess believes that the castle belongs to her because she cannot be a princess without a castle. The party also knows that there has been no nobility in Yrego in at least 300 years. The princess further says that she knows she's a princess because her father told her so growing up, and she intended to take this castle and rule the surrounding territories.

The party, sensing that she was not in a right state of mind, decided to bound her for her own good. Fin cast a sleep spell on the princess, Sixtus bound her hands with some rope, and Therion assured the wyrmlings. As the princess came to, Fin was picking the locks binding the young dragons. The princess shouted threats to the party as the dragons were being freed. As he quickly unchained them, Therion instructed the wyrmlings to join him in the other room for safety. As the last dragon is freed, the princess casts a flame spell on her bindings. As soon as her hands are free, Sixtus instinctively swings his greatsword and separates the princess' body from her head. The party removes some fancy gloves from the body.

Once back at the entrance, wyrmlings in tow, the dragon thanks the adventurers. She asks them to wait as she flies to one area of the castle and returns with a bag in her mouth. Inside the bag is general treasure, in addition to a bottle of magical pigments, some unidentified magical goggles, and the deed to the castle.

The dragon takes her babies onto her back and flies away in search of a safer home. The party reenters the castle, finds the lord's hall, and rests for the night.